Two days isn’t enough to see Antwerp properly, so don’t try. Spend day one on the essentials, then leave the city entirely on day two: Ghent is under an hour away, gets a fraction of Bruges’ crowds, and is the pick the dossier keeps circling back to for travelers based in Antwerp specifically. This is the shortest entry in the Antwerp-as-a-base family ; the 3-day version adds Mechelen if you get a third day later.

Three days lets you see Antwerp once and leave twice, which beats spending all three days inside the same handful of streets. One day in the city, two days radiating out to Ghent and Mechelen, the underrated pick and the quickest one, on rail lines that never need a change of station. Shorter on time? Drop back to the 2-day version ; got a fourth day instead, the 4-day version adds Brussels.

Four days is where this itinerary starts to click: one day in Antwerp, three days out on the rails, and no repeated ground. Belgium is small enough that this isn’t ambitious, it’s just a normal week off. Need a fifth day? The 5-day version adds Bruges; short on time, the 3-day version drops Brussels instead. Book these before you go A Ghent canal and altarpiece walking tour: Viator A guided Brussels day walk: GetYourGuide A bed near Antwerpen-Centraal or the Grote Markt: Booking.

Five days lets you add the most photogenic canal town without rushing it, the whole appeal of treating Antwerp as a base rather than a single stop. One day in the city, four days radiating out to Ghent, Mechelen, Brussels and Bruges, home for dinner most nights. Want a sixth day instead of ending on Bruges? The 6-day version swaps in the Belgian coast as well. Book these before you go

Six days is where the day trips finally get a beach on them. One day in Antwerp, five days radiating out across Belgium, ending with the North Sea instead of another old town or cathedral. Want the full week? The 7-day version adds a genuine border crossing to Lille. Book these before you go A Ghent canal and altarpiece walking tour: Viator A Bruges canal and Belfry walk: GetYourGuide A guided Brussels day walk: GetYourGuide A bed near Antwerpen-Centraal or the Grote Markt: Booking.

Seven days is the version where Antwerp finally crosses a border. Five days leave the city entirely, radiating out to five towns across Belgium and one in France, and then the week loops back so the last day moves at a slower pace instead of sprinting to a platform. Antwerp is small, flat and stitched to the rest of Belgium by frequent trains, so one base beats dragging a suitcase between six hotels.

Three days builds on the free-sights core of Antwerp’s weekend plan with a full day inside the Diamond District and the world’s only individually UNESCO-listed museum. This is the version for travelers who want the city’s odder, less-photographed side, not just the Grote Markt. See the 2 day , 4 day , 5 day , 6 day and full week versions, or the guide to Antwerp’s hidden gems . Book these before you go:

Two days is enough to see Antwerp’s old town properly and still spend a whole afternoon on things that cost nothing. Day 1 covers the Grote Markt and the Cathedral of Our Lady; Day 2 is built entirely around the river, including a free rooftop and a free tunnel most visitors never hear about. Staying longer? See the 3 day , 4 day , 5 day , 6 day and full week versions, or the guide to Antwerp’s hidden gems .

Antwerp is a genuine destination on its own, so treat these six day trips as extensions, not the reason you booked the flight. Ghent sits under an hour away and quietly beats Bruges for anyone based here, since Bruges runs closer to ninety minutes each way. Mechelen is the cheapest, quickest hop of the six, done and back before dinner. Brussels, Ostend and Lille round out the list, and only Lille asks you to bring ID for the border.

Skip trying to visit the Rubenshuis. It has been closed since January 2023 and will not reopen in full until 2030 at the earliest, so the hour you were planning to spend there is better spent inside the Cathedral of Our Lady, standing in front of the same Rubens altarpieces he painted for that exact building. That trade-off sets the tone for this guide: Antwerp rewards travelers who skip the obvious stop for the one two streets over.

Four days adds a full day southeast of the center, to a street of Art Nouveau facades most first-timers never walk past, plus the reopened fine arts museum that quietly outdoes the closed Rubenshuis. Everything from the 3 day itinerary stays intact underneath. See also the 2 day , 5 day , 6 day and full week versions, or the guide to Antwerp’s hidden gems . Book these before you go:

Five days adds a full day of fashion history and beer culture on top of the diamonds, prints and free river views covered in the 4 day itinerary . This is the version for travelers who want Antwerp’s craft side, not just its sightseeing checklist. See also the 2 day , 3 day , 6 day and full week versions, or the guide to Antwerp’s hidden gems . Book these before you go:

Six days keeps everything from the 5 day itinerary and adds a deliberately slower day back in Eilandje, plus the one Antwerp museum that tells an entirely different story: emigration, not art. See also the 2 day , 3 day , 4 day and full week versions, or the guide to Antwerp’s hidden gems . Book these before you go: Check rates near Centraal on Booking.com Book a diamond district tour for Day 3 Book an old town walking tour for Day 1 Browse more Antwerp tours on Viator Day 1: Grote Markt and the railway cathedral Grote Markt, the Brabo Fountain’s hand-throwing legend, and Antwerpen-Centraal, the “railway cathedral” Mashable named the world’s most beautiful station in 2014.

A full week keeps the six-day core from the 6 day itinerary intact and spends the last day outside the city, a half-day trip and back. See also the 2 day , 3 day , 4 day and 5 day versions, or the guide to Antwerp’s hidden gems . Book these before you go: Check rates near Centraal on Booking.com Book a diamond district tour for Day 3 Book an old town walking tour for Day 1 Browse more Antwerp tours on Viator Day 1: Grote Markt and the railway cathedral Grote Markt, the Brabo Fountain’s hand-throwing legend, and Antwerpen-Centraal, the “railway cathedral” Mashable named the world’s most beautiful station in 2014.